Site redesign delaying Warrior’s $1 billion arena deal

The Golden State Warriors' initial arena proposal has part of the arena jutting out over the eastern edge of Piers 30-32 and doesn't leave enough room along that side to berth a cruise ship. (Rendering courtesy of Golden State Warriors)

It turns out that delay in solidifying the financial terms for the Golden State Warriors’ proposed $1 billion waterfront arena project is largely because the team is revamping the design for the site, a team representative said.

The primary issue with “Design 2.0,” as one member of the arena team put it, is the plan to have a backup cruise ship berth on the eastern side of Piers 30-32, one of the few remaining deep water sites along the city’s waterfront.

Having that as an option is important not only to maritime unions like the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, said a team spokesman, but also to officials on the State Lands Commission, which will look closely at whether the arena project includes a maritime use and is compatible with the public trust doctrine by enhancing public access.

“We’re taking into account the feedback we get from various stakeholders, particularly the state regulators,” spokesman PJ Johnston said. “There’s a labor component to having this use as well.”

The team and city officials had been contemplating for months the option of incorporating a backup dock for cruise ships and other large vessels. The Navy regularly uses the site to dock a ship during Fleet Week, like the USS Makin Island last year. It’s also sometimes used as ships transition into dry dock at Pier 70.

The problem is the initial location of the arena, basically angled into the southeast corner of the 13-acre pier, with part of the arena jutting out over the eastern edge, doesn’t leave enough room to berth a large ship there.

The design team is now looking at moving the arena away from the eastern edge of the pier. But to preserve the team’s commitment to having at least 50 percent of the site as public open space, that would mean shrinking or reworking something else, like the planned 105,000 square feet of retail space. That could impact the bottom line.

And then there’s the issue of views. Part of the teams’ stated rationale for situating the arena back from the waterfront and angled in a corner of Piers 30-32 was to preserve as many sight lines as possible from the Embarcadero and surrounding buildings.

A group of neighbors actively opposed to putting the arena on Piers 30-32 says the planned 135-foot-tall event hall will be a major problem for views.

The Warriors maintain the ongoing redesign is sensitive to that.

“There always has been, and there continues to be, heightened sensitivity to the beauty of the building itself and the beauty of the location,” Johnston said. “Views from the land as well as from the water are key elements of that. We still think it can be done in a way that provides spectacular views and is an unobtrusive as possible.”

Exactly when the tweaking by architecture team Snohetta and AECOM will be done, and when the public will get to see it, is still being determined, but Johnston said it should have no impact on the plan to have the arena open in time for the 2017 NBA season.